Dispatch system to remote devices

ABSTRACT

A method and system for presenting promotional content to a user of a communication device involves receiving information from a communication device, where the information relates to the communication device, and identifying a result relating to the information that is capable of being presented in a plurality of formats on the communication device, and dynamically selecting a format for the result from among the plurality of formats, and presenting the result in the selected format for display by the communication device.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This disclosure relates to the presentation of electronic information oncommunication devices, and more particularly to the presentation ofelectronic advertisements visually or aurally on communication devices.

BACKGROUND

Advertising is a primary technique by which sellers of products and/orservices communicate with potential purchasers in the hopes ofinfluencing them to purchase the goods and/or services they are selling,or to disperse information, convey a message, or promote a cause.Advertisers frequently desire to highlight advantages, benefits,efficiencies and promotions associated with their products and/orservices, and generally wish to present the information in a fashionthat will be pleasing to a viewer or listener. Effective advertising canenhance product/service desirability in the minds of consumers, whichcan result in increased sales, revenues, and profits for the providers.However, advertising can be expensive, and companies frequently devotesubstantial resources toward cost-benefit analysis efforts in an attemptto maximize their returns on advertising investment.

There are several aspects to effective advertising. To be successful, anadvertising campaign should reach those potential consumers for whom theproducts/services are intended, such that they may be influenced topurchase the respective products/services. Additionally, theadvertisement should be in a format that is useful-to the personperceiving the advertisement under the prevailing circumstances.Furthermore, the advertisement should be enjoyable to the observer, asan observer is unlikely to be positively influenced by an advertisementthat is distasteful or otherwise unpleasant, or by an advertisement thatis presented in a format to which the observer is not receptive.

Advertisements typically are static in nature. That is, they are oftenpresented in a particular format that remains constant, without anyvariability in form, function, or presentation. Examples include printadvertisements in newspapers, magazines, promotional flyers, billboards,and the like. Auditory advertisements such as a recorded messagebroadcast over the radio or over a public address system are furtherexamples. Television commercials provide yet another common example.Because of their static nature, such advertisements may, over time,become less effective as potential purchasers may instinctively“tune-out” the message after repeatedly being presented with the sameadvertisement or information in the same format. Moreover, while staticadvertisements may be useful to some potential customers under certaincircumstances, they may not be useful to other potential customers underalternative circumstances, or may be less useful than they would be werethey presented in a more appropriate format.

Interactive advertising has recently gained popularity. With interactiveadvertising, an advertiser attempts to target a particular group ofrecipients with a particular advertisement, where the particular groupis believed to be receptive to the particular advertisement. In thisway, advertisers may be able to contain advertising expenses by pursuingonly those potential customers who fit a particular profile, or who havetaken some action that is in some way related to the particularadvertisement or to the associated good and/or service.

Advertising on the Internet can be interactive. For example, the GoogleAdWords system uses a query-keyword-relevant advertising method topresent computer users (e.g., desktop computer or laptop computer users)with advertisements relevant to a tendered search request. Similarly,the Google AdSense system uses a content-relevant advertising method toserve ads relevant to the content of a document, such as a web page, tocomputer users. With the current popularity and ubiquity of cellular ormobile telephones, which now frequently have the capability to connectto the Internet to access online content, another interactiveadvertising channel has emerged. Static advertisements have beenpresented on mobile telephones, including fully textual advertisementsand advertisements that include a coupon code. These advertisements,however, are routinely presented in the same format.

Thus, there is a need for a system that can provide effective and usefuladvertisements to users of mobile devices under a variety ofcircumstances. Moreover, there is a need for a system that canstrategically analyze, select, and present advertisements in varyingformats on mobile devices.

SUMMARY

A method and system are disclosed to provide dynamic service ofadvertisements to communication devices. In one general implementation,a method of presenting promotional content to a user of a communicationdevice is disclosed. The method includes receiving from a communicationdevice information relating to the communication device and identifyinga result relating to the information relating to the communicationdevice, where the result is capable of being presented in a plurality offormats on the communication device. The method further includesdynamically selecting a format for the result from among the pluralityof formats, and presenting the result in the selected format for displayby the communication device.

In various implementations, the information relating to thecommunication device may be a query, and the communication device may bea mobile communication device. The result may include a characterstring, and selecting the format may comprise classifying the characterstring and choosing the format based on the classification of thecharacter string. The information relating to the communication devicemay be classified, including by parsing the information relating to thecommunication device, and the format may be selected by implementing amapping from the information relating to the communication deviceclassification to the format. The mapping may be modified in response tothe receipt of a user input such that the classification of theinformation relating to the communication device maps to an alternativeformat from among the plurality of formats. The format may be selectedbased on a limitation of the communication device, or may be selected atrandom from among the plurality of formats. The format may be selectedfrom the group consisting of a click-to-call format, aclick-through-to-landing-page format, a coupon format, a video clipformat, an audio clip format, and a banner format.

In some implementations, a response to content presentation may bereceived from a user, and the format may be selected based on theresponse. The response may comprise a selection of an advertisement.Additionally, a plurality of responses to content presentation may bereceived from the user, and the format may be selected based on theplurality of responses. In other implementations, responses may bereceived from a plurality of communication devices, and the format maybe selected based on the plurality of responses. Each such response mayinclude a selection of an advertisement. In still other implementations,each result in the plurality of results may be associated with amonetary value, and the format may be selected by determining arecompense based on the monetary value and a content selection history.The result may comprise an advertisement.

In another general implementation, a system for presenting promotionalcontent to a user of a communication device is disclosed. The systemincludes an interface to receive information from a communication devicewhere the information relates to the communication device, and means incommunication with the interface for generating a result for theinformation in response to reception of the information. The result maybe capable of being presented in a plurality of formats on thecommunication device. The system further includes means for dynamicallyselecting a format for the result from among the plurality of formats.

In various implementations, the result may comprise a character string,and selecting the format may comprise classifying the character stringand choosing the format based on the classification of the characterstring. In some implementations, the format may be selected based onresponses received from a plurality of communication devices, on arandom selection from among the plurality of formats, or based on alimitation of the communication device. Each result in the plurality ofresults may be associated with a monetary value, and selecting theformat may comprise determining a recompense based on the monetary valueand a content selection history. A response to content presentation maybe received from a user, and the format may be selected based on theresponse.

In yet another general implementation, a computer-readable medium withinstructions stored thereon that, when executed, performs a method ofpresenting promotional content to a user of a communication device isdisclosed. The method includes receiving from a communication deviceinformation relating to the communication device and generating a resultfor the information in response to reception of the information. Theresult may be capable of being presented in a plurality of formats onthe communication device. The method further includes dynamicallyselecting a format for the result from among the plurality of formats,and presenting the result in the selected format on the communicationdevice.

Various implementations may provide certain advantages. For example, auser of a communication device may be served promotional content in aformat that is well-suited to the user's circumstances, or to which theuser is likely to be receptive. Users may enjoy receiving promotionalcontent in a preferred or relevant format, which may enhance the user'sexperience, and may increase the likelihood that the user will follow-upon the promotional content. Similarly, advertisers and goods or servicesproviders may effectively reach potential customers with theiradvertising campaigns, which may lead to increased sales, revenues andprofits.

The details of one or more embodiments of the invention are set forth inthe accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features,objects, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thedescription and drawings, and from the claims.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system that includes a data processingsystem that may be used to provide dynamic service of advertisements fora mobile device, according to one implementation.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the data processing system of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 3-10 are exemplary screen shots showing promotional content invarious advertising formats that may be presented on a mobile device.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication handset forgenerating requests and receiving and using information generated inresponse to those requests.

FIGS. 12 is a flow chart showing exemplary steps for providing dynamicservice of advertisements for a mobile device.

FIG. 13 is a mobile device-central system-content source flow chartshowing exemplary steps for providing dynamic service of advertisementsfor a mobile device.

Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The systems and techniques described here relate to strategic service ofadvertisements (ads) to mobile devices, which may include dynamicanalysis, selection, service and presentation of advertisements. Thesystems can take many forms, including wireless mobile telephones,personal digital assistants (PDAs), personal communicators, and thelike. Data may be entered into the devices in a variety of forms,including by telephone keypad, stylus, or audio (e.g., voice) input. Ingeneral, the systems operate by receiving a user input or selection froma mobile device, identifying one or more appropriate advertisements inresponse to the input, and selecting and serving to the mobile device asuitable advertising format from among two or more available formats forthe advertisement(s). Presentation of information or content may bebased on a user's request or requests, on other information such asrecent activity by other users of the systems, or on a combination ofrequests and other information.

Advantageously, the systems and techniques may allow a mobile deviceuser to be presented with promotional information in a format that iswell-suited to the user's circumstances, or to which the user is likelyto be receptive. This may, in turn, allow advertisers to moreeffectively reach potential customers with their advertising campaigns,which may lead to increased sales, revenues and profits for theadvertisers and goods/services providers. Moreover, mobile device usersmay appreciate the convenience of advertisement presentation in apreferred format, or may enjoy the variety and spontaneity that may beattendant dynamic presentation. In this manner, the mobile device user'sexperience may be enhanced as relevant, useful, and visually appealingresult information may be presented, while advertisers andgoods/services providers may improve their business results and reduceadvertising resource waste.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system 10 that includes a data processingsystem that may be used to provide dynamic service of advertisements fora mobile device, according to one implementation. In thisimplementation, the system 10 includes one or more devices 12 a-12 c,shown as a cellular telephone for communicating with a user, but couldtake any appropriate form, such as a PDA, a personal computer, apersonal communication device, etc. In this implementation, the device12 a has a display screen 14 that can be controlled to display anyappropriate information to a user of the device 12 a. For example, thedisplay screen 14 could display information related to an Internetsearching application, such as a search box and related control buttons,a listing of search results, or a collection of one or moreadvertisements, to list just a few illustrative examples. A searchengine, such as a search engine connected to the cellular network by theInternet, may be used to perform a network search in response to a userstimulus originating from the mobile device 12 a. The display screen 14may then display results, as will be described in more detail below.

Data may be entered into the device 12 a in any of a number of manners.Specifically, data entry keys 16 may be used to enter information suchas alphanumeric characters, and may take the form of a standardtelephone keypad, with alphabetic characters on the 2 through 9 keys.The keys 16 may alternatively be arranged in a non-standard pattern, andother appropriate ways of entering alphanumeric information, includingvoice recognition, may also be used. As used here, references to entryof text encompass entry through a keyboard or by writing, and also othermanners of data entry, such as by speaking to a voice-recognitionenabled system. Control keys 18 may be provided, for example, to performpredetermined functions or programmed functions, or to control icons,images, or text on the display screen 14. The keys 16, 18 may also beused as supplemental keys; i.e., the number “0” could representsomething other than “0,” the “#” key may be used as a space key, the“*” key may be a proxy for the backspace key, and the “1” key mayrepresent punctuation. Any of the keys 16, 18 may also be used asdirectional keys for on-screen navigation. Other appropriate datapresentation and data entry features may also be provided, particularlywhere the device 12 operates via voice control.

The system 10 also includes a data processing system 20, servers 22 a-22c, a control station 24, and a network 26. The mobile devices 12, thedata processing system 20, the servers 22 a-22 c, and the controlstation 24 are each coupled to the network 26. In this implementation,the mobile device 12 communicates wirelessly with the network 26, suchas over a cellular telephone network. The network 26 may be a singlenetwork such as a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN)like the Internet, or may alternatively be a combination of networks.The servers 22 a-22 c may include content servers that store collectionsof documents (e.g., web pages), advertisement servers that storeadvertisements for various products or services (for example, text-onlyads, image ads, graphical ads, audio or video ads, etc.), or e-mailservers that provide email functionality to user devices 12. Servers 22that store combinations of documents, advertisements, emails, etc., mayalso be used. The documents or ads may further include embeddedinformation such as machine-executable code or links to other documents.The servers 22 may store electronic content in electronic documentswritten in XHTML (Extensible Hypertext Markup Language), HTML (HypertextMarkup Language), WML (Wireless Markup Language), cHTML (compact HTML),or in any other appropriate format.

In the embodiment shown in system 10, the servers 22 a-22 c storeelectronic promotional content, such as advertisements 28, 30, 32 thatmay be presented on mobile devices 12 a-12 c, and which may be presentedin a variety of formats. Each of the servers 22 a, 22 b, 22 c is shownstoring an advertisement: server 22 a stores an ad 28, which may be anad for camping equipment; similarly, server 22 b stores an ad 30, whichmay be an ad for groceries; and server 22 c stores an ad 32, which maybe an ad for computer equipment, for example. Each server 22 a, 22 b, 22c would typically store a large number of advertisements or otherelectronic content; for clarity, a single advertisement is shown foreach server 22 a-22 c in FIG. 1. In this example, each of theadvertisements 28, 30, 32 may be presented on the mobile device 12 intwo or more formats.

Data processing system 20 includes an advertisement service controlmodule 33. The ad service control module 33 may dynamically analyze,select, serve and present an appropriate advertisement, or anappropriate advertisement format for an advertisement having multiple adformat possibilities, on the display 14 of the mobile device 12 a-12 c.The ad service control module 33 may receive a user input and present anappropriate ad format in response, including selecting an appropriateformat from among a group of possible ad formats for presentation on thedevice 12. The ad service control module 33 may further cause an actionassociated with a particular ad format to be initiated, such as inresponse to a user input, for example.

The ad service control module 33 may function as a “learning system,”reacting to past events and modifying future behavior in response, andmay provide dynamic service of advertisements to mobile device users. Inthis manner, a mobile device user's experience may be improved as theuser is presented with an ad format suitable to her prevailingcircumstances. The operation of the ad service control module 33 will bedescribed in more detail below.

Advertisement 28 has four associated formats 34, 36, 38, 40, as do theother ads 30, 32. Each ad 28, 30, 32 could have more or fewer formatpossibilities. For example, an ad may have one, two, three, five, six,etc., possible formats, and each format may be presentable on the mobiledevices 12 a-12 c. For a given ad, each associated format may includesimilar or different content or information, may have a similar ordifferent appearance when presented on the devices 12 a-12 c, or mayhave similar or different actions associated with it.

Some ad formats may have actions associated with them, while others maynot. If an ad format has an action associated with it, a user may causethe data processing system 20 to initiate the action by making anappropriate selection or by providing an input, such as by pressing akeypad button 16, 18 on the device 12, giving a voice command if thedevice is voice-activation enabled, contacting a touch-sensitive screen,etc. In some cases, a given ad format may have more than one actionassociated with it, and the user may initiate the one or more actions,for example, by providing one or more alternative inputs.

A first format 34, labeled “Ad Format A,” may be a “click-through” or“click-through-to-landing-page” format, and may permit a user to accessrelated content, such as a web page, by making an appropriate selection(for example, by “clicking-on” a displayed icon by pressing a button 16,18) or upon another appropriate action. In one implementation, thelanding page or web site may be a home page for a business, and maypresent additional information concerning the business or theproducts/services available, etc.

In one illustrative example, the ad service control module 33 may firstdynamically select advertisement 28 as being suitable for presentationto a particular mobile device user or a particular mobile device 12.Next, the ad service control module 33 may select theclick-through-to-landing-page format 34 (or another appropriate format)from among the various ad format possibilities 34, 36, 38, 40 for the ad28, and may present the advertisement 28 in the selected format 34 onthe mobile device. The user may then view the ad on the device 12 andmay desire to access the related content associated with the ad format34 (such as to obtain additional information), and may make anappropriate selection. After receiving the selection, the ad servicecontrol module 33 (or alternatively, another module or component withinthe data processing system 20) may then present the landing page or aportion of the landing page on the display 14 of the mobile device 12for the user's viewing pleasure. Appropriate selections may include userinputs such as a button press, touch-sensitive screen contact, voicecommand, or some other suitable user action, and may also include apassive selection, such as an expiration of a time-out or waitingperiod, for example.

A second format 36, labeled “Ad Format B,” may be a “click-to-call”format, and may permit a user to directly communicate with a relevantparty, such as an advertiser or goods/services provider, via a telephonecall using the mobile device 12, for example. The user need not haveknowledge of, or have memorized the corresponding telephone number, andthe number need not have been previously stored in memory on the device12. As such, the user may conveniently be presented with a relevant andtimely communication option, without the inconvenience of having toconduct additional research such as searching for or looking up thephone number, or writing the number down.

In one implementation, following the ad service control module's 33dynamic selection and presentation of the ad 28 in the click-to-callformat 36 on the device 12, a user may make an appropriate selection, asby selecting an icon or text on the display screen 14, to place thephone call. In other implementations, a user may press an appropriatekey 16, 18 on the phone keypad or deliver a voice command to place thephone call. The user may then conduct business over the phone, includingpurchasing or ordering the product or service, inquiring as to location,driving directions, or hours of operation of the business, or may askquestions concerning the advertisement or the product or service, tolist just a few examples. Other communications options such as textmessaging, paging, and the like may also be incorporated with theclick-to-call advertising format 36.

A third format 38, labeled “Ad Format C,” may be a coupon format, andmay permit a user to view, acquire, receive, redeem, email, etc., acoupon for associated goods and/or services. The coupon may provide fora discounted price on the goods or services, may permit the user topurchase goods/services that might not otherwise be available to theuser, or may enable the user to take advantage of some other special orlimited-time offer. Rebates redeemable for refinds or coupons entitlingthe user to complimentary products or services may also be providedunder this format.

The coupon may be redeemable in a number of manners. For example, thecoupon format 38 may include a coupon code that the user could presentto a merchandiser after printing the code or otherwise transferring thecode to a tangible medium (e.g., jotting the code down on paper).Alternatively, the coupon code or equivalent may be electronicallytransferred to the merchandiser, and the user's account may be creditedin an appropriate amount. Follow-up email, text- or voice messageconfirmation may also be provided. Use of such coupons may also entitlethe user to additional benefits, such as admission into drawings orcontests where prizes are awarded, or acknowledgement as a preferred ordistinguished customer with attendant perks, such as free shipping, freegift wrapping, free or discounted customer service support, extendedwarranty eligibility, etc.

A fourth format 40, labeled “Ad Format D,” may be a banner format thatmay provide information concerning the advertisement, and may include,for example, textual content and/or one or more images that may berepresentative of the respective products and/or services. In oneimplementation, an ad presented in a banner format 40 does not includean associated action. In other implementations, one or more actions areassociated with the banner format 40. Banner format ads may be text-onlyor image-only ads, or may include combinations of text and one or moreimages. Embedded content may also be included. The exemplary collectionof ad formats 34, 36, 38, 40 described above is meant to beillustrative, and other format types can additionally or optionally beused. Examples include video clip ad formats, including animation-basedformats, and audio clip ad formats, as well as combination audio/videoformats.

In some cases, a given advertisement may have more than one associatedad format of a particular type. For example, an advertisement mayinclude two or more click-through-to-landing-page formats, each of whichmay correspond to a landing page having text in a particular language(e.g., English, Japanese, French, Spanish, German, etc.). Similarly, anadvertisement may include more than one click-to-call format, where theformats are associated with different phone numbers, for example, orwhere one is associated with a phone call action and one with a textmessage action, etc. Multiple coupon formats or banner formats may alsobe available for a given advertisement, and any suitable combination ofthe various format types may be provided. The ad service control module33 may then dynamically select an appropriate ad format for presentationon the device 12 according to various rules, conditions, inputs, etc.,as will be more fully described below.

In addition, a promotional message can also be represented by multiplestyles of ads, whether in the same or different formats. For example, amaker of pens may want to target young professionals, students, andolder professionals for the same product. Different styles of ads can beprepared to target users in each sub-market. For example, small videoclips may be prepared, with one showing the pen's useful homeworkfeatures (e.g., a combination ballpoint and highlighter), edgy businessfeatures (e.g., a built-in MP3 player), and traditional businessfeatures (e.g., classic design). While each of these ads may be in thesame format (video clip), they may each have different styles. Inaddition, the formats could vary (e.g., with a click-through ad foryounger people and a dial-through ad for older people). The ad servicecontrol module 33 may then dynamically select an appropriate ad styleand/or format for presentation.

Each of the ad formats 34, 36, 38, 40 may include one or more components42 for different tags or indicators (e.g., HTML tags, or XHTML, cHTML,or WML format components) that are included within the document. Forclarity, FIG. 1 only shows the components 42 for the fourth ad format40. The components 42 may be used to determine how to display electroniccontent within the document, including text, graphics, audio, video,embedded content, etc., according to one implementation. Certaindocument components may include address link information or phone numberinformation. For example, certain HTML tags may provide informationabout URL (Uniform Resource Locator) links to other documents stored onseparate servers.

In addition, a document template may be provided to include all of thecomponents that are common to the various document formats. Eachdocument format may then define additional components to be added to thetemplate. For example, the template could include a logo, while eachformat could define content (e.g., a text-based message targeted to acertain demographic) to go with the template.

The control station 24 may be a work station, computer terminal, mobilecomputer, PDA or other handheld device, etc., and may permit anadministrator or user to update or modify advertisement serviceparameters, rules, mappings or algorithms stored in the data processingsystem 20. For example, an administrator may decide that all grocery adsshould be presented in a coupon format, all car ads should be presentedin a click-to-call format, or that all computer-related ads should bepresented in a click-through-to-landing-page format, to list just a fewillustrative examples. The administrator may implement one or moremappings specifying that each advertisement of a particular type (e.g.,pertaining to groceries, cars, or computers) be presented in aparticular format (e.g., coupon, click-to-call,click-through-to-landing-page, etc.). These modifications may be made inresponse to actual or predicted trends in user content preferences orselections, for example, or may be in made in response to evaluativedata such as surveys or market studies. The changes or modifications maythen alter future operation of the ad service control module 33 and themanner in which promotional content is dynamically selected andpresented, permitting a flexible method of updating system parameters oralgorithms.

The data processing system 20 may take any appropriate form, and may be,for example, a system such as that provided by Google or other similarcompanies, such as those providing on-line search services. FIG. 2 is ablock diagram of the data processing system 20 of FIG. 1. The dataprocessing system 20 may receive information requests from the mobiledevice 12 (see FIG. 1), may locate suitable information corresponding tothe request, may dynamically select an appropriate format from among acollection of possible formats for the information, may prepare theinformation in the selected format for presentation on the display 14 ofthe device 12, and may convey the content to the device 12. The dataprocessing system 20 includes an interface 70 to permit externalcommunications in a variety of ways. For example, the data processingsystem 20 may use the interface 70 to communicate with the servers 22a-22 c (see FIG. 1) over the network 26 to access and process electroniccontent that is stored on the servers 22 a-22 c. Similarly, the dataprocessing system 20 may communicate with the mobile devices 12 a-12 cvia the network 26, or via the network 26 and the cellular phonenetwork, for example, or via some other combination of networks. Arequest/response processor 72 may receive and process, as by parsing orformatting, for example, a request from the mobile device 12 a, such asa network search request. The network search request may include one ormore search query terms entered by a user.

A search engine 74 may then receive the search request from therequest/response processor 72, and may search a searchable index 76 forelectronic content appropriate for, or corresponding to, the searchrequest. The ad service control module 33 may additionally influence thesearch, as by providing relevant parameters, instructions, or directivesto the search engine 74. The index 76 may include an index database anda cached information database. The index database may contain datarepresenting searchable information available to the data processingsystem 20. As an illustrative example, the data processing system 20 mayscan the Internet or various intranets for content such as web sites,workgroup discussions, advertisements, etc. The system 20 may extractkey words, phrases, or other objects from the content, and may organizethe information in the index database in a manner that allows readysearching. Statistical or other information such as indicators of howcertain web sites link to other web sites to facilitate a system such asthe Google Page Rank system may also be generated.

The cached database may contain copies or partial copies of content thatthe data processing system 20 has identified. In one implementation, thecached database may contain web pages or portions of web pages (e.g.,only textual content or only non-video content) or advertisements orportions of advertisements. The cached database may permit a useraccessing the system 20 to request locally-stored copies of the contentrather than remote copies, which may otherwise require making directcontact with the content provider. As such, the user may be able toreduce latencies and access content faster, and may have access tocontent that the provider has since altered or removed, or to contentthat has otherwise become unavailable from the content provider.Additional information including various applications, systemparameters, information about registered users of the system 20, etc.,may be stored in storage (not shown in FIG. 2) within the dataprocessing system 20.

A control component 78 manages the operation of the data processingsystem 20, and includes a search engine and content control module 80, auser interface control module 82, and the ad service control module 33,in this implementation. The search engine and content control module 80may include a crawler that automatically traverses the network 26 andrequests electronic documents or advertisements from the servers 22 (seeFIG. 1). Such content, or portions thereof (e.g., keywords), may then bestored in the index database or cached database, and may later besearched or retrieved.

The content may be classified according to the electronic format thecontent is provided in, by whether the content is of a type that may bepresented on a mobile device (for example, whether on a particulardevice or on mobile devices in general), by the genre of product orservice an advertisement pertains to, by advertiser or goods/serviceprovider, etc., or by any other appropriate classification strategy. Thesearch engine and content control module 80 may use predetermined ormodifiable conditions or methods to determine whether the content is tobe stored in the index 76, and whether information currently stored inthe index 76 should be purged, including first-in-first-out (FIFO),least recently used (LRU), random replacement, or other appropriatemethods known to those skilled in the art.

The user interface control module 82 prepares electronic content forpresentation on the display 14 of the mobile device 12 a, and receivesuser input. The user interface control module 82 may work in concertwith the request/response processor 72 to format a response to a requestin a manner that allows it to be used by the requesting device, such asdevice 12 a. For example, the request/response processor 72 may formator convert information to a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) format,HTML document, XML document, VoiceML result, dHTML, xHTML, Java,Javascript, or any other format that the requesting device may becapable of interpreting, and may then convey the result to interface 70to be transmitted to device 12 over network 26 (see FIG. 1). Internalcommunications within the data processing system 20 may occur over ahigh speed, high bandwidth network or networks such as SONET,Infiniband, Ethernet, or any other appropriate architecture and protocolto permit the system 20 to respond to a large number of distinctrequests simultaneously, or near simultaneously.

As described above, in this implementation, the ad service controlmodule 33 resides in the control component 78. In other implementations,the ad service control module 33 may stand alone in the data processingsystem 20, or may reside on the mobile device 12 (see FIG. 1).

The ad service control module 33 may include, for example, ad servicerules 84, an advertisement or ad service selector 86, an ad serviceengine 88, and data storage 90. Any of the ad service rules 84, selector86, engine 86, or data storage 90 may be combined or separated asappropriate, and may be centrally located (as in data processing system20) or locally installed (as on the mobile device 12). In someimplementations, one or more of the ad service rules 84, selector 86,engine 88, or data storage 90 may be omitted.

The ad service rules 84 may include parameters, statistics, algorithms,profiles or mappings that may be applied so as to manage the manner inwhich advertisements and ad formats are analyzed and selected forpresentation. The ad service rules 84 may be specific to particularusers (e.g., in a profile of rules for the user, or with pointers for auser to particular parameters so as to minimize required storage space).For example, the ad service rules 84 for a particular user may indicatethat the user prefers click-to-call ad formats, orclick-through-to-landing-page ad formats, or another preferred format.The rules may also indicate that the person prefers a particular styleof ad (e.g., humorous and edgy, or informative and serious) or is partof a demographic from which preferences may be reasonably inferred.

Such indications may be specified by the user, for example, or may bedynamically determined by the ad service control module 33 by catalogingand analyzing user responses, noting trends or behavior patterns in userresponses, etc., and adjusting accordingly. For example, if the adservice control module 33 notes that the user has a higher “selectionrate” (that is, the ratio of the number of times that the ad is“selected” to the number of times the ad is rendered or the number of adimpressions) for click-to-call ads versus other types of ad formats, themodule 33 may dynamically increase the percentage of advertisementspresented in this preferred format. As such, the user may be served adsin a format to which she is more receptive, which may result in a moreenjoyable user experience and may result in a more effective advertisingcampaign for the advertiser.

The rules 84 may also include expected bandwidth information, resolutioncapabilities, processor qualifications, or other device or networklimitations for a particular user or mobile device, which may influencethe types of ad formats that are most appropriate for that user ormobile device. The ad service rules 84 may additionally or alternativelyinclude rules pertaining to all mobile device users, or to particularsubsets of mobile device users.

The ad service rules 84 may be dynamically updated by the ad servicecontrol module 33 in response to user inputs or selections (either froma particular user or from a collection of users), including aggregatingresponses over a period of time and analyzing the inputs for trends.Moreover, the rules 84 may be dynamically updated by the ad servicecontrol module 33 in response to changing conditions or circumstancessuch as an unavailability of network or phone service in a particulararea or associated with a particular server, business, or communicationsdevice, for example. In an implementation, the ad service control module33 may log and monitor how a particular user or group of users respondsto various content presentations, such as selection rates for variousadvertisements or advertisement formats, and may modify the rules 84 inresponse.

The ad service selector 86 controls which selection mode, of possibleoptions, is used by the ad service control module 33 to analyze anddynamically select among advertisement formats. Many selection modes, ormethods of dynamically determining an appropriate advertising format,may be used. In one implementation, a received user query, such as anetwork search query, is classified into a query category, and ad formatselection and presentation is determined according to the category. Inother implementations, the information received from the communicationdevice may include a description of the content that a user is presentlyviewing, or has previously viewed, a description of a user's bookmarks,surfing history, or a list of preferred or often-visited web sites, aprior indication of a user's interests, or a location, such as a GPSlocation or cell location, for example. Promotional content may be thentargeted based on this information. Individual user or device inputhistories, or aggregations of inputs from multiple users or devices overa period of time may be used, including responsive behavior according toprevious format presentation.

Mappings from category to ad format may be manually updated, as by anadministrator using control station 24, or may be automatically updatedby the ad service control module 33. As another example, content fromindividual advertisements may be parsed to determine an appropriate adformat. Word strings within the ad may be parsed, for example, and maybe compared with predetermined keywords so that an appropriate formatmay be determined based on the comparison.

As yet another example, each advertising format for a givenadvertisement may be assigned a monetization value based upon an amountthat the corresponding advertiser is willing to pay per rendition or perselection of the particular ad format. Monetization values may bedefined according to a CPC (cost per click), or CPM (cost per 1000renditions) approach, or another pricing method as appropriate. Someadvertisements or advertisement formats may be offered under ahomogeneous pricing structure, while others may be offered under amixture of structures (e.g., both CPC and CPM). In one embodiment, anadvertisement includes one or more CPC ad formats, and one or more CPMad formats. In an effort to maximize realized revenue, the ad servicecontrol module 33 may use the monetization values, in conjunction withad selection histories or expected outcomes for particular query types,e.g., to strategically select and serve suitable advertisement formatsdynamically. Cross-ad format auctions could be used to establishmonetization values, permitting businesses to bid for monetizationvalues. Additionally, multiple ad formats or styles could be syndicated,which may increase the monetization potential of the ads. In oneimplementation, a syndication partner may select a subset of theavailable ad formats or styles. Random ad format presentation may alsobe used. This may preserve spontaneity, and may be implemented with arandom number generator as is known to those skilled in the art.

In an implementation, the ad service control module 33 may dynamicallyserve ads according to a conversion rate analysis. Conversion rates maybe defined in a number of ways, and may vary depending on advertisingcategory or advertising format. One type of conversion rate may be theratio of the number of times a user consummates a purchase (or performsother similar activities such as reviewing information presented by theadvertiser) after viewing an advertisement versus the number of timesthe advertisement is rendered to, or impressed upon, the user. Forexample, a user may be served a click-to-call format ad; the user mayselect the ad to place a call to the business and may purchasemerchandise over the phone, resulting in a conversion. As anotherexample, the user may be served a click-through-to-landing-page ad, andmay select the ad; the ad service control module 33 may present thelanding page of the corresponding business to the user, who may thenpurchase an item from the site within a predetermined time (e.g., onehour, one day, or one week), resulting in another conversion. A userredeeming a coupon obtained via presentation of a coupon formatadvertisement may be yet another example of a possible conversion.Alternatively, a conversion may be defined by any appropriate measurableor observable user action, such as spending a sufficient amount of timeviewing a landing page or web site, selecting one or more links to otherdocuments within the landing page or web site (or navigating to at leasta given depth), registering on a web page, conversing for apredetermined amount of time or with a sufficient level of interest orspecificity over the phone, etc.

When using selection rate or conversion rate analysis for dynamicallyserving promotional content to mobile devices, the ad service controlmodule 33 may use any suitable statistical measure or technique todetermine whether modifications, substitutions, or adaptations ofselection and/or serving strategies are warranted. For example,thresholds, linear combinations with appropriate weighting coefficients,standard or moving (such as one-week, two-week, one-month, two-month,six-month, etc.) averages, or any other appropriate statisticaltechnique may be used.

Selection modes may be adjusted according to a predetermined schedule.In one implementation, a particular selection mode (such as one of thosediscussed above) is alternated with a random selection mode according toa predetermined time or ad-count schedule. For example, the ad servicecontrol module 33 may dynamically select ad formats according to aconversion rate selection mode for a predetermined period of time (e.g.,one day), and then switch to a random selection mode for anotherpredetermined time (e.g., twelve hours, one day, two days, etc.), andcontinue to alternate between the modes in this fashion. Alternatively,the module 33 may alternate between modes following the service of apredetermined number of ads. More complex selection mode schemes,including involving more than two modes, may also be used.

The ad service engine 88 applies processes to the ad service rules 84according to a setting indicated by the ad service selector 86. The adservice engine 88 thereby causes appropriate advertisements andadvertisement formats to be provided, for example, so that componentswithin the data processing system 20 may prepare them for presentationon the mobile device 12.

The data storage 90 is a repository for storing information useful tothe selection and presentation of promotional content, such as userselection histories and preferences, compilations of multiple userhistories, device specification information, including devicelimitations that would caution against service of a particular adformat, survey data, advertiser or content provider information, etc. Toallow for scalability, the data processing system 20 or any of itscomponents may be split into two or more separate systems or components,and may be connected to the network 26 or to one another in any of avariety of ways, as is known in the art. In addition, the variouscomponents may be located at the same location or different locations,and may be controlled by one or multiple entities.

FIGS. 3-10 are exemplary screen shots showing promotional content invarious advertising formats that may be presented on a mobile device.The data processing system 20 may present each of the screen shots shownin FIGS. 3-10 on the display 14 of the mobile device 12 (see FIG. 1).The promotional content shown in FIGS. 3-10 relates to camping,backpacking, and outdoor adventure, and may correspond, for example, toadvertisement 28 and various of its associated ad formats (see FIG. 1).

FIG. 3 is an advertisement presented in a text-only format that mayinclude one or more of the following: a title 120 that provides anidentifying label for the advertisement (labeled “Bargain CampingSupplies” here), a text section 122 that may include one or more linesof text that provide additional description for the advertisement, and aWorld Wide Web (WWW) address 124. The address 124 may denote the addressof the business's home page, for example, or may list the physicaladdress of the place of business. Because the text ad of FIG. 3 does notinclude images, icons, video, or other bandwidth-intensive content, itmay be appropriate for situations where bandwidth concerns or devicelimitations make presentation of more complicated formats difficult.

FIG. 4 is an advertisement presented in a click-through-to-landing-pageformat that includes the same title 120, text section 122, and address124 as the text ad of FIG. 3, and additionally includes a selectableindicator 126 (labeled “Select”), that when selected by a user causesthe data processing system 20 to present related electronic content,such as a web page, on the display 14 of the mobile device 12. In oneimplementation, a user may press a button on the phone keypad to selectthe indicator 126, perhaps after first navigating to focus on theindicator (that is, taking actions to cause the indicator to behighlighted or otherwise distinguished to denote that the indicator willbe selected following an appropriate action, like a button push). Whenthe indicator 126 is selected, the data processing system 20 may loadthe landing page or home page of the corresponding business—a campingsupply store in this example—or alternatively may load a Web pageassociated with a particular product or service, to list just a coupleillustrative examples. This electronic content may be loaded from anexternal server 22 a-22 c (see FIG. 1), from the index 76 of the dataprocessing system (see FIG. 2), or from memory within the mobile device12. In the latter example, the content may have been previouslydownloaded to the mobile device 12, such as at the time that theadvertisement was transferred to the device. Similarly, the promotionalcontent shown in FIGS. 3-10 may be loaded from any of an external server22, the data processing system 20, or local memory on the device 12. Inone implementation, multiple formats are downloaded to the device 12,and selection and presentation is performed later.

FIG. 5 is an advertisement presented in anotherclick-through-to-landing-site format with a selectable indicator 128labeled “View Site,” which informs a user that they can view anassociated web site by selecting the indicator. For any of the formats,the content may be called up by methods other than clicking on aparticular icon. For example, the entire area of the advertisement maybe “live,” so that clicking anywhere on it produces a click-through. Inaddition, different areas of the ad may be provided to perform differentactions. As one example, a single ad could display a subset of allavailable formats, such as click-to-call and a click-through-to-landingsite. Such options could be provided in two different areas of an ad, orin the form of a question to the user after the user has selected ageneral click-through selection. As another example, multipleclick-through-to-landing site options may be available in a single ad,such as by directing a user to various product sites where the adpictures multiple different products.

FIG. 6 is an advertisement presented in a click-to-call format thatincludes the same title 120, text section 122, and address 124 as thetext ad of FIG. 3, and additionally includes a selectable indicator 130(labeled “Call Now”), that when selected by a user causes a telephonecall to be placed to the corresponding business. For example, the usermay be intrigued by the promotional content of the click-to-call ad, andmay wish to call the business to get information on products orservices, pricing, availability, hours of operation, driving directions,address or location, business policies, etc. The click-to-call formatmay provide a convenient method of facilitating direct contact between apotential customer and a representative of the business itself, whichmay provide prompt answers for the user and a ripe sales opportunity forthe business. The text may also differ, as discussed above, such as bydescribing various aspects of camping supplies that could pertain tovarious demographic groups, such as sales specials, adventure gear, andnatural preservation.

Click-to-call ad formats may be appropriate for advertisements frombusinesses local to a home calling area for a mobile device. Moreover,click-to-call formats may be appropriate when a user is traveling andhappens to be in the same geographic area as the advertising business.The ad service control module 33 may determine an appropriateadvertising format from among the various possibilities for a particularadvertisement, and may serve and present the most appropriate format onthe device 12 a. Also, parameters associated with such ads may provideadditional information about whether the click-to-call is relevant to aparticular region (e.g., for local service businesses) or is broader,e.g., nationwide, so that the user is not shown a click-to-call optionif they are not in an appropriate region (e.g., as determined by GPSreadings provided by their device).

FIG. 7 is an advertisement presented in a click-to-call format thatincludes a selectable indicator 132 that, when selected, permits a userto send a text message to the business associated with theadvertisement. For example, the user may select the indicator 132 andkey-in a text message in the conventional way, and the message may besent to the business. A representative of the business might laterreturn the text message or call the user.

FIG. 8 is an advertisement presented in a coupon format that includesthe same title 120, text section 122, and address 124 as the text ad ofFIG. 3, and additionally includes a selectable indicator 134 (labeled“Redeem Coupon”), that when selected by a user may cause acoupon-related event to occur. For example, upon selection of theindicator 134, the data processing system 20 may present a coupon codeon the display 14 of the mobile device 12 a. The user may then print orwrite down the coupon or coupon code, and may later redeem the couponfor a discounted price on an associated good or service. Alternatively,after a user selection of the indicator 134, the data processing system20 may e-mail the coupon code to a suitable recipient account, such asthat of the user or the corresponding business.

The user may then be able to redeem the coupon, or an account may beautomatically credited in an amount associated with the coupon. Becausemany consumers enjoy receiving discounts on their purchases, promotionalcontent presented in a coupon format may develop and fortify brandloyalty among consumers, which may result in improved sales and profitsfor the corresponding businesses or advertisers.

FIG. 9 is an advertisement presented in a banner format that includesthe title 120 and address 124 of the previously discussed ads, andincludes an image 136, in this case depicting two people enjoying acamping experience. The banner format may also include one or more textsections, and may include additional images. In one implementation,banner format advertisements do not include an associated action orrelated content (such as an associated web page, phone number, coupon,etc.). A user might view the banner ad, note the electronic address 124of the business (“www.camp-more.com”), and decide to access the site ata more convenient future time, for example. In other implementations,advertisements presented in banner formats may have related content oractions associated with them.

FIG. 10 is an advertisement presented in a combination click-to-call,click-through-to-landing-site format, and includes two associatedactions. The ad includes the click-to-call indicator 130 and theclick-through-to-landing-site indicator 128 from FIGS. 6 and 5,respectively. The indicators 128, 130 may function as previouslydescribed, and may provide a user with two convenient options forpursuing the advertisement. Other combinations, such as an advertisementincluding click-to-call and coupon functionality, orclick-through-to-landing-page and coupon functionality, etc., may alsobe used. Format combinations involving three or more formats are alsopossible.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication handset forgenerating requests and receiving and using information generated inresponse to those requests. A communication system 200 may beimplemented in a device such as a personal communicator, e.g., acellular telephone. The system 200 receives and transmits informationwirelessly using a transmitter 202, with the received signals beingpassed to a signal processor 204, which may comprise digital signalprocessor (DSP) circuitry and the like. Normal voice communication isrouted to or from an audio processor 206, which may communicate with aspeaker/microphone 208, including via a user interface 210.

User interface 210 handles all communication with the user of the system200, including voice, visual, and data entry communication. Visualpresentation of information may be provided via a display screen 212.General data entry, apart from entered voice data, may occur through akeypad 214, which may be arranged as a standard 12-key telephone keypad.The device may also be provided with appropriate control keys 216 forperforming necessary control functions. Keypad 214 and control keys 216may include contact push-buttons, joysticks, portions of touch-sensitivepanels, or other appropriate input devices. Although the communicationis shown for clarity as occurring through a single user interface 210,multiple interfaces may be used, and may be combined with othercomponents as necessary.

The system 200 may be provided with a number of computer applications218, such as games, applications to assist in dialing numbers, andapplications to permit web browsing, including the entry of data as partof the web browsing. The applications 218 may be stored in ROM, Flashmemory, RAM, MRAM, EPROM, EEPROM, or otherwise, as appropriate, and maybe accessed by the system 200 as needed. A dialing module 220 mayprovide standard dialing functionality for the system, receiving entereddialing digits or voice dialing instructions through interface 210, andproviding appropriate dialing signals through transmitter 202 using acommunication interface 222. A data entry module 224 receives data otherthan dialing instructions, such as search data entered into the system200. The data entry module 224 may provide the entered data to anapplication 218, for example.

In one implementation, the user interface 210 functions at a low levelof abstraction to control or respond to the I/O devices of the system200 as directed by the user interface module 82 of the data processingsystem 20 (see FIG. 2). Examples include input receipt and displaypresentation. The user interface 210 may receive user input, such as aninput signal resulting from a user pressing keypad 214 or keys 216, andmay convert the input in a manner known to those skilled in the art toan appropriate signal that may be interpreted by the user interfacemodule 82. The user interface 210 may also receive signals from the userinterface module 82 that specify a particular view to be rendered on thescreen 212, and may generate appropriate signals to effectuate thedesired display view in a manner known to those skilled in the art. Inanother embodiment, the user interface 210 may assume a larger role andwork in concert with the user interface module 82, sharing userinterface administration and control duties with the user interfacemodule 82. In yet another embodiment, the user interface module 82 maybe merged with the user interface 210 on the handset.

An ad service controller 226 may include service rules 228, a serviceengine 230, a service selector 232, and storage 234. These components228, 230, 232, 234 may work in a similar manner to those discussed withrespect to data processing system 20 in FIG. 2. The ad servicecontroller 226 may also be included as part of an application 218. Ingeneral, the components allow all or part of the process of dynamicanalysis, selection, service and presentation of advertisements to betaken up by the system 200 itself rather than by a central system.

Although shown in an implementation in a personal communicator, system200 may take many other forms. For example, system 200 could beimplemented as part of a personal computer, whether networked orun-networked, and if networked, whether by wire or wirelessly. Also,data entry may occur in different manners, including by completekeyboard, constrained keyboard, or voice command. Also, one or morecomponents may be located remotely from the system 200, such as at aremote server, and the functionality of system 200 may be provided bycombining the components or using components other than those shown.

Also, a server may initially pre-load various advertisements onto system200, and those advertisements may later be displayed as the user usesthe system 200. Such as system may avoid latency problems in displayingadvertising, and may actually display the advertising during latencyperiods in downloading content. For example, if a user at one pointsearches for “mp3 players,” the system may be sent promotional contentfrom manufacturers such as Apple, Samsung, and LGE, and from serviceproviders such as Sony, Arista, and Def Jam. That promotional contentmay not be displayed initially (e.g., if it is downloaded in thebackground).

FIG. 12 is a flow chart 300 showing exemplary steps for providingdynamic service of advertisements for a mobile device. The steps shownmay be generally executed by the ad service control module 33, which mayreside on a central server, such as data processing system 20, or on amobile device. A process begins at step 305 with a receipt of a queryfrom a mobile device. The query may include one or more search terms, aspreviously described. In response to the query, a result may begenerated at step 310, and the result may include one or more possibleformats. In one implementation, the result is an advertisement that hasmultiple associated ad formats, one or more of which may be presented ona mobile device. An appropriate format may be dynamically selected fromamong the possible formats at step 315, and the selected format may beserved to the mobile device at step 320, and the process ends.

FIG. 13 is a mobile device-central system-content source flow chartshowing exemplary steps for providing dynamic service of advertisementsfor a mobile device. In general, the chart shows a process by whichpromotional content is obtained and dynamically analyzed, selected andserved from among multiple possible formats and presented to a mobiledevice. The flow chart generally depicts steps that can be performed inparallel as an example of the operation of the process, but theoperations could occur in other orders and with other steps asappropriate. The chart is divided into three regions: a left regionlabeled “Mobile Device,” a center region labeled “Central System,” and aright region labeled “Content Source.” In general, the regions indicatethat steps located therein are performed by a mobile device (such asdevice 12 a), a central system (such as data processing system 20), or acontent source (such as server 22), respectively.

At step 405, the central system requests an advertisement, and a contentsource supplies an advertisement in one or more formats at step 410. Thecentral system may analyze the advertisement and the associated formatsat step 415, including parsing and classification of words, wordstrings, images, embedded content, etc. The central system may store theadvertisement and related key words in an index for later searching, forexample, and may append additional information as appropriate. A mobiledevice may submit a request to the central system at step 420, such as anetwork search request. The central system may analyze the request atstep 425, including parsing the query and classification of the queryinto a query category. Relevant advertisements may be identified at step430, as by employing a search engine to search an index according tosupplied parameters. The advertisements may then be analyzed andcharacterized. When a given advertisement is identified, an appropriatead format may be selected at step 435 from among one or more potentialad formats associated with the advertisement using mappings and rules,algorithms, selector modes, etc. In some implementations, the searchengine may only identify advertisements associated with a particularformat. The advertisement in the selected format may then be served tothe mobile device.

At step 440, the mobile device may display the advertisement in theselected format. The advertisement may include an associated action andrelated content, and at step 445 the user may request the related actionor content. For example, with a click-through-to-landing page format theuser may select the ad to view a related web page, and with aclick-to-call format the user may select the ad to place a call to thecorresponding business. A coupon ad format may allow the user to receiveor redeem a coupon, as previously described. The central system mayaccommodate the request at step 450, including presenting the relatedcontent (web page, coupon or coupon code, etc.), facilitating a phonecall or text message, and the like. The mobile device may display theresult of the action, such as the related web page or coupon, ifapplicable, at step 455, or may place a phone call or send a textmessage as appropriate.

As used herein, the terms “electronic document” and “document” mean aset of electronic data, including both electronic data stored in a fileand electronic data received over a network. An electronic document doesnot necessarily correspond to a file. A document may be stored in aportion of a file that holds other documents, in a single file dedicatedto the document in question, or in a set of coordinated files.

Various implementations of the systems and techniques described here maybe realized in digital or analog electronic circuitry, integratedcircuitry, specially designed ASICs (application specific integratedcircuits) or FPGAs (field programmable gate arrays), computer hardware,firmware, software, and/or combinations thereof. These variousimplementations can include implementation in one or more computerprograms that are executable and/or interpretable on a programmablesystem including one or more programmable processors, which may bespecial or general purpose, coupled to receive data and instructionsfrom, and to transmit data and instructions to, a storage system, atleast one input device, and at least one output device.

These computer programs (also knows as programs, software, softwareapplications, applications, or code) include machine instructions for aprogrammable processor, and can be implemented in a high-levelprocedural and/or object-oriented programming language, and/or inassembly language or machine language. As used herein, “machine-readablemedium” refers to any computer program product, apparatus and/or device(e.g., magnetic disc, optical disc, memory, Programmable Logic Device(PLD)) used to provide machine instructions and/or data to aprogrammable processor, including a machine-readable medium thatreceives machine instructions as a machine-readable signal. The term“machine-readable signal” refers to any signal used to provide machineinstructions and/or data to a programmable processor.

The systems and techniques described here can be implemented in acomputing system that includes a back end component (e.g., as a dataserver), or that includes a middleware component (e.g., an applicationserver), or that includes a front end component (e.g., a client computerhaving a graphical user interface or a Web browser through which a usercan interact with an implementation of the systems and techniquesdescribed here), or any combination of such back end, middleware, orfront end components. The components of the system can be interconnectedby any form or medium of digital data communication (e.g., acommunication network).

The computing system can include clients and servers. A client andserver are generally remote from each other and typically interactthrough a communication network. The relationship of client and serverarises by virtue of computer programs running on the respectivecomputers and having a client-server relationship to each other. Theclient-server relationship need not fit a formal client-serverdefinition, however.

A number of embodiments of the invention have been described.Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may bemade without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.Portions of this disclosure discuss operation though portable devices,but any of a number of devices may be used, including fully-functionalgeneral purpose computers. Also, the logic flows depicted in the figuresdo not require the particular order shown, or sequential order, toachieve desirable results. Also, other steps may be provided, or stepsmay be eliminated, from the described flows, and other components may beadded to, or removed from, the described systems.

Various kinds of I/O devices may be used, including a CRT (cathode raytube) or an LCD (liquid crystal display) display screens or monitors,keyboards and pointing devices (mouse, trackball), to list just a fewexamples. Also, other kinds of feedback can be provided (e.g., visualfeedback, auditory feedback, or tactile feedback), and input from theuser can be received in any form, including acoustic, speech, or tactileinput.

In some implementations, portions of the dynamic service ofadvertisements may be performed on a central server while other portionsmay be performed locally on the mobile device. For example, a centralserver may aggregate a group of advertisements or a group of ad formatsfor one or more advertisements, perhaps in response to a query from themobile device, and may download the content to memory on the localdevice. Then, following storage of the content, selection of theappropriate advertisement or ad format may be performed locally at themobile device. Accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope ofthe following claims.

1. A method of presenting promotional content to a user of acommunication device, the method comprising: receiving from acommunication device information relating to the communication device;identifying a result relating to the information relating to thecommunication device, the result capable of being presented in aplurality of formats on the communication device; dynamically selectinga format for the result from among the plurality of formats; andpresenting the result in the selected format for display by thecommunication device.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the informationrelating to the communication device comprises a query.
 3. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the communication device is a mobile communicationdevice.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the result comprises acharacter string, and wherein selecting the format comprises classifyingthe character string and choosing the format based on the classificationof the character string.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprisingclassifying the information relating to the communication device, andwherein selecting the format comprises implementing a mapping from theinformation relating to the communication device classification to theformat.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein classifying the informationrelating to the communication device comprises parsing the informationrelating to the communication device.
 7. The method of claim 5, furthercomprising receiving a user input and, in response to the input,modifying the mapping such that the classification of the informationrelating to the communication device maps to an alternative format fromamong the plurality of formats.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein theformat is selected based on a limitation of the communication device. 9.The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a response tocontent presentation from a user, and wherein selecting the formatcomprises determining the format based on the response.
 10. The methodof claim 9, wherein the response comprises a selection of anadvertisement.
 11. The method of claim 9, further comprising receiving aplurality of responses to content presentation from the user, andwherein selecting the format comprises determining the format based onthe plurality of responses.
 12. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising receiving responses from a plurality of communicationdevices, and wherein selecting the format comprises determining theformat based on the plurality of responses.
 13. The method of claim 12,wherein each response in the plurality of responses comprises aselection of an advertisement.
 14. The method of claim 1, whereinselecting the format comprises a random selection from among theplurality of formats.
 15. The method of claim 1, wherein each result inthe plurality of results is associated with a monetary value, andwherein selecting the format comprises determining a recompense based onthe monetary value and a content selection history.
 16. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the result comprises an advertisement.
 17. The methodof claim 1, wherein the format is selected from the group consisting ofa click-to-call format, a click-through-to-landing-page format, a couponformat, a video clip format, an audio clip format, and a banner format.18. A computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon that,when executed, performs a method of presenting promotional content to auser of a communication device, the method comprising: receiving from acommunication device information relating to the communication device;generating a result for the information in response to reception of theinformation, the result capable of being presented in a plurality offormats on the communication device; dynamically selecting a format forthe result from among the plurality of formats; and presenting theresult in the selected format on the communication device.
 19. A systemfor presenting promotional content to a user of a communication device,the system comprising: an interface to receive information from acommunication device, the information relating to the communicationdevice; means in communication with the interface for generating aresult for the information in response to reception of the information,the result capable of being presented in a plurality of formats on thecommunication device; and means for dynamically selecting a format forthe result from among the plurality of formats.
 20. The system of claim19, wherein the result comprises a character string, and whereinselecting the format comprises classifying the character string andchoosing the format based on the classification of the character string.21. The system of claim 19, wherein selecting the format comprisesdetermining the format based on responses received from a plurality ofcommunication devices.
 22. The system of claim 19, wherein selecting theformat comprises a random selection from among the plurality of formats.23. The system of claim 19, wherein each result in the plurality ofresults is associated with a monetary value, and wherein selecting theformat comprises determining a recompense based on the monetary valueand a content selection history.
 24. The system of claim 19, furthercomprising receiving a response to content presentation from a user, andwherein selecting the format comprises determining the format based onthe response.
 25. The system of claim 19, wherein the format is selectedbased on a limitation of the communication device.